I've been meaning to talk about this forever, but I keep forgetting. Watch PBS's NOVA scienceNOW. Yes, the way they write the title is annoying, but after watching it, I'm gonna go ahead and give them the benefit of the doubt because they're way smarter than me. They have tons of clips on the website: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/
This year they aired new episodes about colonizing Mars, animal intelligence, how the brain works, how we came to exist, and futuristic social robots! But another episode, about the possibility of living forever, really got me thinking. They talked about being able to isolate longevity genes, induce medically assisted hibernation to slow one's metabolism and reduce the rate at which we burn oxygen in order to limit the damage of a heart attack or stroke, and grow living human organs in labs in order to eliminate transplant waiting lists... But what if we succeed at all these fascinating things? What the hell are supposed to do if no one ever dies? Our planet's already being pushed to its limits! Do we create the medical technology and then limit who has access to it (which is, I guess, what we already do now, huh)? Anyway, here's a mind-blowing segment from that very episode. Enjoy:
Watch the full episode. See more NOVA scienceNOW.
I like the show, but prefer the classic NOVA better. I get why he's the host, but Mr. Neil deGrasse Tyson annoys me somehow. Maybe it's the name?
ReplyDeleteHaha. His name annoys me, too, but I actually like him a lot!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE him. Can you imagine having a science teacher like him? Or any teacher like him?
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly what I think every time I see him: if only all science teachers were more like him, America wouldn't be getting dominated by the rest of the world...
ReplyDeleteIt's been a while, but I must retract my previous comment. I've been hearing him speak more free form recently, not scripted like the NOVA stuff I had been used to. His public speaking/interview tone, responses, sense of humor, and much else is very entertaining and informative. I am now a fanboy.
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